Denial
by AlienZombies
Summary: It's not just a river in Egypt, Harry. DRARRY. Draco/Harry


"You're gay, aren't you?"

The question made Harry start. He whirled around in his chair to stare at Hermione, who was smiling a thin sort of smile. Her quill was poised over her paper, dripping one little sphere of ink, as though she had been about to write something when the realization hit her. Ron, sitting beside her, was clearly elsewhere, his blue eyes unfocused and staring into space. History of Magic was his designated "naptime."

"What are you talking about?" Harry hissed, surprised to feel his cheeks burning.

Hermione shrugged before she pretended to write down something Professor Binns had said. Once she was finished, she looked up at him again and said, "Well, are you?"

Harry shook his head, not understanding. To his left, the Hufflepuff sixth-year sharing his desk let out a faint snore.

Hermione sighed, setting her quill down with a look of deliberate patience on her face. "It's just that I've been studying…"

"Like always," Ron managed to mumble from somewhere in his haze before he dozed off again.

Biting her lip, Hermione continued, "The rate of homosexuality in the wizarding world is phenomenal. Nearly 30% of the population… 27.5%, according to the 1980 census, which, admittedly, is rather outdated, and with the increase in population that number might have grown… Oh, don't look so off-put! I'm just _saying_, you exhibit all of the proper signs –"

"_Hermione_!"

"I'm sorry. It would just make so much _sense_ –"

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean? I do _not_ act like a poof!"

"Please, there's no need to be snappy about it. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

"God dammit!"

"Would you like to say something to the class, Mr. Potter?" Professor Binns commented from in front of the blackboard. The tone in his voice hadn't changed in the slightest from his lecture, and it was only the expression on Hermione's face that alerted Harry that he had gotten in trouble.

Harry knew he must have been rather loud to attract attention from Professor Binns, who usually paid no attention whatsoever to his class's interests. The other students in the class, grateful for a distraction, all turned to stare at Harry, who slumped down into his seat.

"Nothing, Professor."

Professor Binns gave a reedy cough and returned to his lecture. Within three minutes, half of the class was asleep again. Ron, however, was peering at Harry owlishly from his seat. Harry glared determinedly at his ink bottle, fruitlessly willing it to do something interesting.

"Harry?" Ron asked after a while, very quietly.

"What?" Harry snapped.

"_Are_ you a queer?"

"_No_."

Hermione tsked behind him; Harry banged his forehead on his desk and feigned falling asleep.

--

Dinner, which came immediately after History of Magic, was tense. It was made even worse by Seamus and Dean, who were playing footsie under the table without any modesty at all, giggling at each other before looking away quickly with strained coolness. No one was fooled by this, except maybe Neville.

This interaction seemed to strike Ron with an idea (of which he had very few). "Oh holy shit, me and Neville are the only straight boys in Gryffindor!"

Neville, panicked, said in a tiny voice, "I never said that."

"_I'm not gay_!" Harry cried furiously.

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"You're not gay, Harry?" Dean asked, quite sincere. He nudged Seamus, who quickly put both of his hands on the table, frowning.

"NO!"

"Oh." Dean looked puzzled.

Harry stabbed at his peas with much violence, gritting his teeth.

"You can't be angry at Dean, Harry," Hermione said in a matronly tone, prying the fork from his hands. Harry, lost without a weapon, pouted.

"Sure I can."

Hermione just patted his arm, smiling.

"I'm sorry for thinking you were gay, Harry," Dean offered, though his tone suggested that he wasn't sorry at all.

"Harry's gay?" Colin Creevey piped up. He snapped a photo of Harry's very pissed-off face.

"I AM NOT!"

"I thought as much," Colin mused, lowering his camera for a second. "I mean… yeah. That makes a lot of sense."

Harry screamed into his fists, which made Seamus laugh.

"Wow, Harry! I'm glad for you."

"Colin, shut the hell up."

"What? Hey, my brother Dennis has some pretty good connections –"

"I'm not gay!" Harry was starting to get tired of saying this.

The outburst was attracting attention. Heads were turning. Harry caught a flash of silver, and realized with a sinking feeling that Draco Malfoy had honed in on the conversation now. And Colin wasn't stopping his chatter.

"Oh. Okay. So, you're closeted, then."

Harry slammed his hands down on the table before he got up and stormed off. Hermione followed him, an amused expression on her face; Ron hesitated before he started after them, and Colin trailed him like a puppy, camera poised over one beady eye.

--

Thanks to Colin, the news of Harry's supposed gayness was soon all over the school. Needless to say, Ginny was furious.

"What is this all about?" she shrieked, waving the Daily Prophet in front of his face at breakfast. She startled Ron so badly that he knocked over the milk jug, spilling it all over Hermione, who groaned resignedly as her skirt was ruined.

Harry slapped Ginny's hand away, cheeks burning. So, it wasn't just the school that had caught wind of this. "It's all Hermione's fault!" he complained. The Prophet was back in his face; he pushed it away again. "Stop that!"

"Is it true?"

"What?"

"IS IT TRUE?"

"NO, GOD DAMMIT!"

"DON'T LIE TO ME!"

The smug look on Dean's face made Harry feel ill. Well, it might have been smugness, or it might have been Seamus, whose hands were not visible once more.

Ginny was squealing like a wet cat, stomping about. She had always been one for histrionics. All of the students were staring with fascination. Where were the teachers? Weren't they supposed to impose some sort of damage control?

Lee Jordan plunked down unceremoniously beside Harry, who started with a yelp. He had been distracted by Ginny, who had found a fork to wave around, now. "Hey, Harry," Lee said, looking sweet and not-menacing as ever.

"I don't want to talk," Harry said. If he wasn't Harry Potter, he wouldn't have even bothered to come down that morning. As it was, he had rationalized with himself, if he could fight the goddamn Dark Lord, he could take a bit of teasing and rumors.

"I understand. It's hard, coming out."

"I don't need your sympathy – and I'm not gay!"

Lee smiled. "Okay."

Fred and George were laughing insanely. "Not gay!" Fred mimicked, flapping his hands. George pressed his face into his brother's shoulder, too overcome with giggles to continue.

When had everyone become so mutinous?

Harry's cheeks burned.

"I don't need this nonsense," he managed to bite out, which started up another wave of laughter. Scowling, he stood and marched out of the room once again. He completely missed the slim shape of Draco Malfoy ghosting out after him.

He was halfway to Gryffindor by the time a pale hand landed just so gently on his shoulder. If it had been anyone else, he would have jumped and burst into a litany of cursewords – _no he was not and it was none of their business_!

But he recognized the touch, and turned, and met a pair of ice-blue eyes staring back at him. Draco's head was cocked slightly, almost endearingly, with puzzlement. "What's this I've been hearing about you being a poof, Potter?" he asked. His voice carried a definite tone of antagonism.

Absolutely one-hundred-percent _not_ in the mood for games, Harry narrowed his eyes. "_Nothing_," he snapped. To his surprise, Draco's expression softened, just a little, probably because he was startled. Then, after a moment, he seemed to recover, and his eyebrows hit the ceiling. Harry groaned inwardly… now there was going to be no escape.

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much," said Draco in a low voice. He was smirking. Smirking at _Harry_.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm sick of all of this." Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of a fight, Harry turned on his heel and forged onward. From the faint sound of breathing and the feather-light click of his shoes, it was clear that Draco was following him and not about to let this opportunity pass him by.

"Why? Are you upset that you were ousted before you were ready? Poor baby."

If Harry didn't know better, he would almost think that Draco was amused by the whole ordeal, rather than malicious.

"Not ousted, because I'm not gay."

"Right. Bisexual."

"God DAMMIT!" Harry stopped in his tracks so suddenly that Draco accidentally collided with him, having been trailing him by too small of a margin. Harry whirled around and shoved him back, and now Draco seemed to be genuinely baffled and shocked – that Harry would dare lay hands on him, would dare lash out like that. "What's it to you, anyway?"

"This clearly involves me, Potter. I find it absolutely fucking hilarious."

Muttering, Harry shuffled his feet. "Yeah, I bet you do." He paused, gritting his teeth, trying to stop himself from attacking Draco. If he threw a punch, they would get in a fight, and if they got in a fight, they would get detention, and if they got detention… Harry might never get some time alone. He sighed, and said, as evenly as possible, "Why don't you just bugger off, Malfoy?"

The expression of utter smugness on his classmate's face informed him that he would have no such luck.

"Quit gloating at me."

Draco's smirk widened.

"Stop it! I'm not gay!"

"Potter… you're a poor liar."

In a fit of childish rage, Harry stomped on Draco's foot. What happened them was instantaneous and unexpected. Draco got a grip on Harry's collar and slammed him up against the wall, which, considering his leaner stature, wouldn't have been possible if Harry hadn't already been off-balance. He kicked Harry's feet apart with one smooth motion to prevent him getting any force behind his struggles, and Draco snarled up into his face.

"Don't you touch me," he growled, and Harry sneered right back.

"I don't see how this involves you, anyway, Malfoy."

For a moment, Draco seemed to be searching him, and then he smiled. "I think it's about time."

Harry hesitated, refusing to believe it, before raising an incredulous eyebrow. "Time…? For… Really?"

In a rare display of bashfulness, Draco ducked his head, and now the grin was unmistakable. "I suppose so."

"Draco, but… Are you sure?"

Draco smacked him, surprising Harry into laughing, and something seemed to snap in Draco and he started laughing, too, and then they were standing there in the hallway doubled over as they poured out everything, short of breath, giggling and guffawing and making a right scene. The few students on the stairs stopped to watch them with looks of utter confusion, which only served to make them laugh harder, until Draco began to cry a little bit, having a painful stitch in his side. Harry's tone reached an almost hysterical pitch, until he was nearly shrieking with it; the strength went out of his knees and he sat on the floor, clutching his sides.

Draco got a handle on himself first, leaning against the banister for support. "Oh, Lord," he gasped out, and let out another few weak giggles.

"I'm so sorry," Harry said from the floor, his words smothered by his hands. His eyes were watering with the effort to breathe normally.

"Stop worrying, Potter, for fuck's sake," said Draco, but there was no real irritation in his voice. They smiled at each other awkwardly, neither daring to say what was necessary, before Harry murmured, very quietly, "I love you."

To which Draco immediately replied, "Stop being such a fucking sap. And it shouldn't have taken a media circus to get you to admit it out loud." At the hurt expression on Harry's face, he amended, "Not that I don't enjoy it. I love you, too." Then he stiffened a little, and looked away, seeming to be a little alarmed at himself for the admission. But Harry was grinning now, and they stayed there for a few minutes in companionable silence before the clamor of students running loose after dinner became louder from down below.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Draco raised a questioning eyebrow at Harry. "So… want to go inform the midget?"

Harry couldn't help but crack a grin. "You mean Collin?"

Draco shrugged. "Yeah, that one."

"Together?"

The expression in Draco's eyes softened considerably, and he heaved a nervous sigh. "I guess so."

With some effort, Harry got to his feet and extended a hand for Draco to take. There was a tense moment of hesitation before Draco shoved his hand into that waiting palm, almost as if expecting it to hurt, and, in consolation, Harry leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Draco's temple.

Some third-year who had been eyeing them squeaked and scampered off.

Steeling their resolve, they headed for the Great Hall. It would take a great deal of work and cooperation to weather the shit storm about to swallow them… but Harry had faith that they would make it.

… Well, probably.

Yeah. There was a good chance of it. A good chance.

He grinned pleasantly as they walked. He wasn't aware of it, looking straight ahead, but beside him Draco was grinning too.

-- **Fin**

I did it for fun.


End file.
